old memories – Page 10 – Take off with Natarajan

” WHAT IS A KUDO, AS IN “KUDOS TO YOU”….?

December 4, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

First, it should be noted that “kudos” is not the plural form of “kudo”, so a “kudo” was once technically nothing. However, because so many people in the last century, mainly in the United States, have thought kudos was plural, in some dictionaries today “kudo” is considered a valid word meaning the same thing as kudos (yet another word created via back-formation).

To answer your question, kudos in English means:

1) Praise / Accolades

2) Credit for one’s achievements

The word “kudos” comes from the Greek κῦδος (kudos), meaning “glory” or “fame”. The “-os” ending in Greek typically indicates a singular noun and is supposed to be pronounced like “-ose”, rather than “-oze”, as many Americans usually pronounce it, “koo-doze”, or as a lot of British people tend to pronounce it “-oss”, “cue-doss”.

The word made its way into English around the late 18th century / early 19th century, meaning pretty much the same thing as it means today. The first documented instance of the “singular” word “kudo” didn’t pop up until 1926.

Source….www.today i foundout.com

Natarajan

அமெரிக்கர் வியந்த தொழில்நுட்பம் – ‘சென்னானேரி’….

December 2, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

குழந்தைகளை நேசிப்பதுபோல ஏரி, குளங்களை நேசித்தவர்கள் நம் முன்னோர்கள். தாங்கள் வெட்டிய ஏரிகளுக்கும், குளங்களுக்கும் பிடித்தமான பெயர்களைச் சூட்டி மகிழ்ந்தனர். மலர்கள் சூழ்ந்த குளங்களை பூங்குளம், அல்லிக்குளம், ஆம்பக்குளம், குறிஞ்சிக்குளம் என்றும், மரங்கள் சூழ்ந்த குளங்களை மாங்குளம், இலுப்பைக் குளம், பலாக்குளம், விளாங்குளம், வாகைக்குளம் என்றும் அழைத்தனர். தெய்வத்தின் பெயர்களிலும் குளங்கள் அழைக்கப்பட்டன.

நீர்நிலைகள் மீது அக்கறையோடு மிகுந்த நேசமும் வைத்திருந்ததால்தான், அதை வெறும் குளம், குட்டை என்று அழைக்காமல் பாசத்தோடு பெயர் வைத்து அழைத்தனர். ஆனால், நவீன தொழில்நுட்பங்களில் முன்னேறிவிட்ட நாம், நமக்கு நினைவு தெரிந்து கடந்த 50 ஆண்டுகளில் ஒற்றைக் குளத்தை யாவது உருவாக்கி பெயர் சூட்டி யிருப்போமா?

ஆற்றின் கால்வாய்கள், வெள்ள நீர் வடிகால்களை எப்படி எல்லாம் சீரழித்தோம் என்று நேற்று பார்த்தோம். ஆயிரக்கணக்கான ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்பே உருவாக்கப்பட்ட அந்த வடிகால் கள். அரிகேசரி ஆறு, வல்லபப் பேராறு, நாட்டாறு, பராக்கிரமப் பேராறு இவை எல்லாம் வைகை ஆற்றுக் கல்வெட்டுகளில் கண்டெடுக்கப்பட்ட பெயர்கள். ஆனால், இவை ஆறுகளின் பெயர்கள் அல்ல. வைகையில் இருந்து ஏரிகளுக்கு தண்ணீர் எடுத்துச் செல்லும் கால்வாய்களின் பெயர்கள். கால்வாய்களே ஆறுபோல பெரிய அளவில் வெட்டப்பட்டன என்பதை கல்வெட்டுக் குறிப்புகள் உணர்த்து கின்றன.

இவ்வாறாக மொத்தம் 3 வகை கால்வாய்கள் அமைக்கப்பட்டன. முதலாவது, வரத்துக் கால்வாய் (Supply Channel). இவற்றில் வரத்துக் கால்வாய்களின் தொழில்நுட்பம் அபாரமானது. ஆறுகளில் குறிப்பிட்ட வளைவுகளில் மட்டுமே வரத்துக் கால்வாய்களின் தலைப்பகுதி வெட்டப் பட்டன. அப்படி வெட்டும்போது ஆற்றில் இருந்து தண்ணீர் மட்டுமே கால்வாய்க்குள் செல்லும். மணல் புகாமல் தடுக்கப்பட்டது. தவிர, ஆற்றில் நீர்வரத்து குறையும் காலத்தில்கூட தடையின்றி கால்வாய்க்குள் தண்ணீர் சென்றது. இதற்கு இன்றும் உதாரணமாக இருக்கிறது வைகை ஆற்றில் இருந்து வட ஏரிக்கு தண்ணீர் எடுத்துச் செல்லும் கால்வாய்.

இரண்டாவது, மறுகால் அல்லது வெள்ள வடிகால் (Surplus Channel). வெள்ளக் காலங்களில் ஏரிகளின் உபரி நீரை கலிங்கல் வழியாக வெளியேற்றும் கால்வாய்தான் மறுகால்வாய். இவற்றின் கொள்ளளவும் ஏரியின் நீர்வரத்துக் கால்வாயின் கொள்ளளவும் சமமாக இருக்கும். நீர்வரத்தும் நீர் வெளியேற்றமும் சரிசமமாக அமைந்து வெள்ளப் பெருக்கை தடுக்க உதவிய தொழில்நுட்பம் இது.

மூன்றாவது, பாசனக் கால் அல்லது கழனிக்கால் (Distribution Channel). ஏரி மடையின் வெளிப்புறத்தில் அமைக்கப் பட்ட இந்த கால்வாய்கள் மூலம் பாசன நிலங்களுக்கு தண்ணீர் பிரித்து விநியோகிக்கப்பட்டது. நிலங்களின் அளவுக்கு ஏற்ப அமைக்கப்பட்ட இந்த கால்வாய்கள் கண்ணாறு, வதி, பிலாறு என்றெல்லாம் அழைக்கப்பட்டன. இவற்றின் தொழில்நுட்பத்தைக் கண்டு இன்றைய நவீன நீரியல் நிபுணர்களே வியக்கின்றனர்.

நெல் பயிரிடுவதற்கு மிருதுவான நிலம் தேவை. அதற்காக நிலத்தை மிருதுவாக்கவும், சமப்படுத்தவும் அதிக அளவில் நீர் தேக்கப்பட்டது. சில நாட்களுக்குப்பிறகு, அதை உழுது நீரை வடித்து விட்டு, நெற்பயிரை நடுவார்கள். இப்படி வடிக்கும்போது கிடைக்கும் உபரி நீரையும், கூடுதலாக கிடைக்கும் மழைநீரையும் வடிகால் வாய்க்கால் களில் சேகரித்து, அடுத்தடுத்த வயல் களுக்கு விடுவார்கள். இது மிகச் சிறந்த நீர் சிக்கன மேலாண்மை. இதற்கேற்ற மிக நுட்பமான நில மட்ட அளவுகளில் பாசனக் கால்வாய்கள் அமைக்கப்பட்டன.

இதற்கு உதாரணமாக திகழ்ந்தது சென்னானேரி. இது திருநெல்வேலி மாவட்டத்தில் பணகுடி – கள்ளப்பனை கிராமங்களுக்கு இடையே இருக்கிறது. ஓய்வுபெற்ற பொதுப்பணித் துறை பொறியியல் அறிஞர்கள் ச.மா.ரத்னவேல், கள்ளபிரான் ஆகியோர் இந்த ஏரியை நேரில் ஆய்வு செய்து, இதன் தொழில்நுட்பம் பற்றி ஏராளமான குறிப்புகளை எழுதியுள்ளனர்.

ஏரியின் பாசனப் பரப்புகள் மேற்கில் இருந்து கிழக்காக மிதமான சரிவுடனும், தெற்கில் இருந்து வடக்காக கூடுதல் சரிவுடனும் உள்ளன. கால்வாய்கள் வழியாக பாசன நிலங்களுக்கு தண்ணீர் விடப்பட்டபோது தண்ணீர் வேகமாக பாய்ந்து, வளமான மேல் பகுதி வண்டலை அரித்துச் செல்லாதபடி விடப் பட்டன. தெற்குப் பகுதியின் பிரதான கால்வாயில் இருந்து தண்ணீர் வயலுக்குச் செல்கிறது. வடக்குப் பகுதி யின் வாய்க்கால் உபரிநீரை வடிக்கிறது. இன்றைய நவீன பொறியாளர்களின் கற்பனைக்கு எட்டாத தொழில்நுட்பம் இது.

அமெரிக்க பொறியியல் வல்லுநர் கில்பர்ட் லாவேன் (Gilbert Lavine) தனது ‘Irrigation and Agricultural Development of Asia’ நூலில் மேற் கண்ட தொழில்நுட்பத்தை எப்படி சிலாகிக்கிறார் தெரியுமா?

‘‘மிதமான சாய்வு தளமாக உள்ள நிலப்பரப்பில் மேல் வரிசைப் பயிர்களுக்கு குறிப்பிட்ட அளவுக்கு முதலில் நீர் பாய்ச்சப்படுகிறது. பிறகு சுழற்சி முறையில், அடுத்த வரிசை களில் அமைந்த பாத்திகளுக்கு படிப் படியாக நீர் அளவைக் குறைத்து பாய்ச்சப்படுகிறது. மேல் பாத்திகளுக்கு ஊற்றப்படும் நீர், கீழ் பாத்திகளுக்கும் வழிந்தோ, கசிந்தோ வரும் என்பதால் நீர் அளவு குறைக்கப்படுகிறது. இதனால் எல்லா அடுக்குகளிலும் உள்ள பயிர்களுக்கும் போதுமான தண்ணீர் கிடைக்கிறது. எல்லா பாத்திகளுக்கும் சம அளவில் தண்ணீர் பாய்ச்சாமல் தண்ணீரை சிக்கனமாகவும் பயனுள்ள வகையிலும் பயன்படுத்த முடிகிறது. மிகவும் சிக்கனமான, பயனுள்ள இந்த நீர் மேலாண்மை வளரும் நாடுகளில்கூட புழக்கத்தில் இல்லை!’’ என்கிறார் அவர்.

ஒரு அமெரிக்கப் பொறியாளருக்கு தெரிந்த அருமை நமக்குத் தெரியாமல் போனதுதான் வேதனை.

இவ்வளவு சிறப்பு வாய்ந்த சென்னானேரியை பார்க்க பணகுடி கிராமத்துக்கு சென்றோம். ஏரியின் பெயரைச் சொல்லிக் கேட்டால் ஊரில் யாருக்கும் தெரியவில்லை. அப்படி ஒரு ஏரியே இல்லை என்றார்கள்.

கடைசியில், ஜெபக்குமார் என்ற பள்ளித் தலைமை ஆசிரியர், ‘‘சென்னா னேரி என்ற பெயரை எல்லாம் மக்கள் மறந்து பல ஆண்டுகள் ஆகிறது. பராமரிப்பும் இல்லாமல் பாழாகிக் கிடக்கிறது ஏரி’’ என்றார். நம்மை ஏரிக்கு அழைத்துச் சென்று காட்டினார்.

கடல்போல பரந்திருந்தது ஏரி. இப்போது பெய்த மழையில் ஏரி நிரம்பி இருந்தாலும் உள்ளே சீமைக் கருவேல மரங்கள் ஆக்கிரமித்திருந்தன.

வெளிநாட்டு பொறியாளர்களையும் வியக்கவைத்த தொழில்நுட்பக் கால்வாய்கள் மண்மூடிப் போய் அனாதையாய்க் கிடந்தன. மதகுகளும் பராமரிப்பின்றிக் கிடந்தன.

‘‘ஏரி முழுக்க தண்ணியிருந்தும், என்ன பிரயோசனம்.. பெருசா பாசனம் ஒண்ணும் இல்லீங்க’’ என்று அங்க லாய்த்தார் அங்கு வந்த உள்ளூர்க்காரர்.

எப்படி இருக்கும் பாசனம்? நாம்தான் கண் இருந்தும், பார்வையற்றவர்களாக அல்லவா இருக்கிறோம்!

Source….டி.எல்.சஞ்சீவிகுமார்….www.tamil.thehindu.com

Natarajan

” Is that Want or Need…” ? ….A Money Lesson for all of us…

November 30, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

Kathleen Elkins

It was about 1997 when my dad first gave me the,
Is that a want or a need? talk.

I was a kindergartner who really wanted chocolate milk at the Soda Shop, a local diner in my hometown of Davidson, North Carolina.

The speech went over my 6-year-old head, but the conclusion of the message stuck — never ask for chocolate milk at a restaurant.

Order water because it’s free.

I learned that afternoon that chocolate milk qualifies as a want, while water qualifies as a need.

As I got older, I started to figure out how other things fall under these two categories. I learned, for example, that those new pair of Sambas I’d been eying counted as a want, but tennis shoes counted as a need, as I travelled for competitive tennis tournaments every weekend.

At first, I was guided by my dad and his definitions of “wants” and “needs,” but eventually I started to formulate my own definitions. I noticed that the chocolate milk column grew exponentially quicker than the water column — luckily for childhood me, I knew not to dare touch the “want” column.

Sure, it was helpful to develop this frugal lifestyle centered around “need-buying” as a high schooler and college student, but my dad’s lesson has become more valuable than ever upon entering the “real world,” where in order to stay afloat with minimal income in an expensive city New York City, you have to distinguish needs and wants.

What this distinction does, is it makes you a diligent and conscious spender, a habit that takes time to form — a habit that a personal finance book or class can define, but can never trulyteach.

That 1997 chocolate milk lesson looms over every purchase I make. I first determine whether or not I’m buying a want or a need, and if it’s a want, I weigh the pros and cons before mindlessly spending.

Of course, there’s always a time and place for a chocolate milk — the occasional splurge keeps you sane — but for the most part, I’ll be the one with the glass of water.

Source…….KATHLEEN ELKINS in http://www.businessinsider.com

Natarajan

Moon expense claims, MacGyver moments and other interesting Buzz Aldrin facts…

November 30, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

Former NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin is pretty clear with about his thoughts on travel to Mars.

AMERICAN astronaut Buzz Aldrin is best remembered for being the second man to set foot onto the surface of the moon during NASA’s Apollo 11 mission.

However, there is much more to the famed astronaut than meets the eye.

Here are 10 facts about 85-year-old that might surprise you.

1. BORN TO WALK ON THE MOON

Buzz’s parents were Edwin Eugene Aldrin Sr and Marion Aldrin.

Nothing seems out of the ordinary here until you discover the mother of the man selected for the Apollo 11 mission was actually born Marion Moon.

So that means Buzz’s career choice was either destiny or a very big coincidence.

2. HIS OWN FIRST ON THE MOON

He may not have been the first man to set foot on the moon, but Buzz Aldrin does hold the dubious honour of being the first man to urinate there.

While making his way down the lander’s ladder, nature came calling and Buzz was forced to perform a lunar leak into a special bag in his space suit.

3. EXPENSE CLAIM

For many, being able to set foot on the moon would be a prestigious honour, but for Buzz it wasn’t enough.

Once returning to Earth, he submitted an expense claim for the Apollo 11 mission, which asked to be reimbursed $AU46.33.

The claim was very accurate in its depiction of “points of travel” with Buzz detailing his travels from Houston to Cape Kennedy to the moon to the Pacific Ocean to Hawaii and then back to Houston.

As the documents show “government meals and quarters” were provided throughout the July 1969 mission, Buzz did not place a claim for those.

However, he did claim for the use of a car for travel between airports on his way to the launch at Cape Kennedy.

The claim was paid by NASA.

4. COOL AS A CUCUMBER

After exploring the surface of the moon, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin made their way back into the lander so they could start their return journey to Earth.

However, once inside, Buzz discovered a broken circuit breaker lying on the floor of the module.

Following a brief search, it was discovered the circuit breaker was from the ascent engine — a vital component required to lift the lander off the moon.

After phoning mission control for advice, the astronauts were to told they would have to wait overnight for a solution.

So with the possibility of an indefinite stay on the moon surface looming, Buzz did something strange.

He spread out on the floor of the landing module and went to sleep, obviously completely unfazed by the hiccup.

5. MOVE OVER MACGYVER

The following morning, Buzz was told getting the breaker pushed back in was the only solution to getting the lander back into space.

With the component being electrical and his fingers being too large to do the job, Buzz began searching for a tool to use.

The solution came in the form a felt-tipped pen he had in the shoulder pocket of his space suit.

After successfully pushing the circuit breaker in with his pen, the lander was ready for takeoff.

Even more impressive was the fact Buzz still has the very same pen sitting in his home.

6. CUSTOMS DECLARATION

If you think being on the first mission to the moon excludes you from filing those pesky customs declarations, you are sadly mistaken.

Upon returning to Earth, all of the astronauts on board Apollo completed and signed customs forms declaring they were brining “Moon rock and Moon Dust” back.

7. BECOMING BUZZ

Buzz Aldrin was born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr on January 20, 1930 in Montclair, New Jersey.

However, his family wasn’t all that keen on the name and ended up nicknaming him Buzz.

The nickname evolved from his younger sister who struggle to pronounce “brother” and would often say “buzzer”.

He legally changed his name in 1988.

8. FLYING HIGH

Long before he was an intergalactic traveller, Buzz had an interest in flying.

This saw him being a test pilot for US Navy and also serving a stint as a fighter pilot.

While on combat missions in Korea, Buzz earned the Distinguished Flying Cross medal for destroying two MIG’s and damaging another.

9. THOSE BLACK MARKS

There is iconic picture of Buzz Aldrin standing on the moon, but closer inspection shows there are two mysterious black marks on the front of his spacesuit.

These are the result of Buzz’s failed attempt to reboard the lander on the surface of the moon.

When trying to jump up to the lander, Buzz didn’t provide enough force and collected his shins on the button rung of a ladder.

Buzz Aldrin has a completely white suit, except for the marks on his shins.Source:News Corp Australia

10. ALL YOU NEED IS A PUNCH IN THE FACE

There are many conspiracy theories floating around questioning the legitimacy of the moon landing.

It is fine to speculate, just don’t approach Buzz Aldrin with your suspicions because if you call him a fraud, he might just punch you in the face.

Matthew Dunn news.com.au

Source….www.news.com.au

Natarajan

Ships Made of Concrete ….!!!

November 18, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

Perhaps the most bizarre choice of material humans ever made to make a vessel that floats was reinforced concrete. For centuries ships have been made of wood, which later gave way to tougher materials such as steel. But steel was expensive and not readily available, which became a major issue during the World Wars when there was an acute shortage of the metal.

Long before the war, in 1848, Joseph-Louis Lambot, the inventor of reinforced concrete, tried and successfully fashioned a small boat out of ferrocement, jumpstarting the small and short-lived industry of concrete shipbuilding. Before long, ferrocement barges were regularly plying the canals of Europe, and just as the century was drawing to an end, an Italian engineer made the first concrete ship.

The concrete ship SS Palo Alto on Seacliff State Beach, California. Photo credit: David Wan/Flickr

As suspected, concrete was not the most ideal material to build ships with. The basic problem with concrete ships is that they require a very thick hull to be as strong as a steel ship. This made the ship very heavy and consequently burned more fuel to move around. And if the hull is breached, they sink quickly owing to their weight. The sailors of WWI often called them “floating tombstones” and hesitated to serve on them.

Nevertheless, ferrocement ships continued to be made and their sizes gradually increased. The largest of these was the 425-foot SS Selma, an oil tanker launched in 1919. Today, its wreckage remain partially submerged in Galveston Bay in Texas Gulf Coast and visible from both the Houston Ship Channel and Seawolf Park.

After the United States entered the First World War, President Woodrow Wilson approved the construction of 24 concrete vessels as support ships to the Navy. However, none of them could be completed on time and put into service. By the time the ships were ready — only 12 of them— the war had ended. The completed ships were sold to private companies who used them for light-trading, storage and scrap.

Photo credit: Joost J. Bakker/Wikimedia

Similar scarcity of steel occurred during the Second World War, and another 24 concrete ships as well as barges for transporting supplies were commissioned. This time, all ships were completed on time and due to innovations in cement mixing and materials, the second fleet was much stronger than the previous. The ships played an important role during the war, particularly in the D-Day Normandy landings, where they were used for fuel and munitions transportation, and as floating pontoons. Some were fitted with engines and used as mobile canteens and troop carriers.

When war ended, steel was once again available and the more efficient steel ships were back in production. The concrete ships were de-commissioned and towed to various harbors to be sunk or made into breakwater. The largest collection is found at Powell River, British Columbia, where ten of them were arranged in an arc to function as a breakwater. Another nine were sunk in shallow water in Chesapeake Bay off the coast of Kiptopeke Beach, Virginia to create a breakwater for the local ferries.

The oil tanker SS Palo Alto was towed to Seacliff State Beach in Aptos, California, and made into an amusement park with amenities including a dance floor, a swimming pool and a café. The park closed two years later when the company went bankrupt. Today, it’s yet another wreck on the beach, its hull fractured through the mid-section.

SS Palo Alto on Seacliff State Beach, California. Photo credit: Ted Silveira/Flickr

SS Palo Alto on Seacliff State Beach, California. Photo credit: Verifex/Flickr

SS Palo Alto on Seacliff State Beach, California. Photo credit: Don DeBold/Flickr

SS Selma at Seawolf Park in Galveston. Photo credit: Louis Vest/Flickr

The wreck of the San Pasqual, off the coast of Santa Maria, Cuba. Photo credit: phamhoanghai/Panoramio

The Kiptopeke Breakwater in Chesapeake Bay, Virginia. Photo credit: Douglas MacGregor/Panoramio

Breakwater created out of concrete ships at Powell River, British Columbia. Photo credit: David Stanley/Flickr

The wreck of SS Selma at Seawolf Park in Galveston. Photo credit: Katie Mague/Flickr

Sources: www.concreteships.org / Wikipedia / www.mobileranger.com and http://www.amusingplanet.com

Natarajan

” மடை”யர்களை போற்றுவோம்…..!!!

November 16, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

80 ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்பு ராஜசிம்ம மங்கலம் ஏரி.

இன்றைய நிலையில் ராஜசிம்ம மங்கலம் ஏரி. படம்: எஸ்.முஹம்மது ராஃபி

ஓடும் நீரின் வேரை அறுத்த வேதனை வரலாறு

நம் முன்னோர்களின் ஏரி தொழில்நுட்பங்களை அறிந்துக்கொள்வதற்கு முன்பாக ஏரிகளைப் பற்றிய அடிப்படைத் தகவல்களை அறிந்துகொள்வோம். மனிதன் வெட்டியது அல்லாமல் இயற்கையாகவே உருவாகும் ஏரிகளும் உண்டு. அவை 6 வகைப்படுகின்றன. பூமித் தட்டுகளின் அசைவால் உருவாவது டெக்டோனிக் (Tectonic) ஏரி (உ.ம்: டிசோ மொரீரி ஏரி-லடாக்). எரிமலை வெடிப்புகளால் உருவாவது வேல்கனிக் (Volcanic) ஏரி (உ.ம்: டவோடா ஏரி-ஜப்பான்). தொடர் காற்று வீச்சால் உருவாவது எயோலியன் (Aeolian) ஏரி (உ.ம்: சாம்பார் ஏரி-ஜெய்ப்பூர்). தொடர் நீர் பாய்தலால் உருவாவது புளுவியல்(Fluvial) ஏரி (உ.ம்: கபர்டால் ஏரி-பிஹார்). பனிப் பாறைகளின் சரிவுகளால் உருவாவது கிளாசியல் (Glacial) ஏரி (உ.ம்: சந்திராடால் ஏரி-இமாச்சலம்). கடலோர இயக்கங்களால் உருவாவது கோஸ்டல் (Coastal) ஏரி (உ.ம்: பழவேற்காடு ஏரி-சென்னை).

ஆனால், மனிதனால் உருவாக்கப்பட்ட ஏரிகளே அதிகம். இந்தியாவில் 2,52,848 ஏரிகள், குளங்கள் உள்ளன. தமிழகம், ஆந்திரம், கர்நாடகம் ஆகிய மாநிலங்களில் மட்டும் 1,66,283 ஏரிகள் உள்ளன. சரி, மனிதன் ஏரிகளை உருவாக்க வேண்டிய அவசியம் என்ன? மனிதன் முதலில் மழையை மட்டுமே நம்பி விவசாயம் செய்தான். மழை இல்லாதபோது மழை நீரை சேமிக்க ஆறுகளின் அருகே சிறு நீர் நிலைகளை ஏற்படுத்தினான். இதுவே ஏரியின் தொடக்கக் காலம். அடுத்ததாக ஆற்றில் இருந்து நீர் நிலைகளுக்குத் தண்ணீர் கொண்டுவர ஆற்றின் குறுக்கும் நெடுக்குமாக சவுக்கு, மூங்கில் கம்புகளை அடித்தார்கள். அவற்றின் இடையே கோரை மற்றும் நாணல் புற்களைக் கொண்டு அடைத்து, களிமண் பூசி சுவர்போல தடுப்பு ஏற்படுத்தினார்கள். இதன் பெயர் கொரம்பு. கொரம்பில் நீர் நிரம்பியபோது கால்வாய்கள் அமைத்து உயரமான இடங்களில் இருந்த குளங்களுக்கு நீரைப் பாய்ச்சினார்கள். இதுவே பிற்காலத்தில் அணைகள் அமைய அடிப்படையாக அமைந்தது.

பழந்தமிழர் நீர் நிலைகளை இலஞ்சி, வாவி, நளினி, கயம், கண்மாய், ஏரி, கோட்டகம், கேணி, குளம், மலங்கன், கிடங்கு, குட்டம், வட்டம், தடாகம், மடு, ஓடை, பொய்கை, சலந்தரம் என்று அழைத்தனர். அப்போது நீர் நிலைகளை உருவாக்குவது ஒரு மன்னனின் தலையாயக் கடமையாக கருதப்பட்டது. இதைத்தான் பாண்டியன் நெடுஞ்செழியனிடம் குடபுலவியனார்,

‘நிலன்நெளி மருங்கின் நீர்நிலை பெருகத்
தட்டோரம்ம இவண்தட் டோரே
தள்ளாதோர் இவண்தள்ளா தோரே’

(புறநானூறு 18) என்று பாடினார். அதாவது, ‘எங்கெல்லாம் நிலம் பள்ளமாக இருக்கிறதோ அங்கெல்லாம் கரை அமைத்து நீர் நிலைகள் உருவாக்கிய மன்னர்களே இந்த உலகில் தங்களது பெயரை நிலை நிறுத்திக்கொள்வார்கள்’ என்கிறார் குடபுலவியனார். அதேபோல 10 வயது முதல் 80 வயது வரை குடிமராமத்துப் பணி செய்வது கடமையாக கருதப்பட்டது. இப்படியாக நீர் நிலைகளை உருவாக்குவதும் பராமரிப்பதும் பழந்தமிழர் வாழ்வோடு ஒன்றியதாக இருந்தது.

நம் முன்னோர் ஏனோதானோவென்று ஏரிகளை வெட்டிவிடவில்லை. இன்றைய பொறியியல் தொழில்நுட்பங்களுக்கு எல்லாம் சவால் விடுபவை அவை. பாண்டியன் மூன்றாம் ராஜசிம்மன் கட்டிய ராஜசிம்ம மங்கலம் ஏரி உட்பட, தமிழகத்தின் பாரம்பரிய ஏரிகளைக் கழுகுக் கண் கொண்டு பார்த்தால் அவை பிறை நிலவின் வடிவில் இருப்பதைக் காணலாம். குறிப்பாக, பழந்தமிழர் ஏரிகளை 8-ம் நாள் பிறை வடிவில் அமைத்தார்கள். ஏரிகள் இந்த வடிவத்தில் அமைவதால் கரையின் நீளம் குறைவாகவும், அதேசமயம் அதிக நீர்க் கொள்ளளவு கொண்டதாகவும் இருந்தன. இது சிக்கனமான வடிவமைப்பு முறை. இதைத்தான் சங்கப் புலவர் கபிலர்,

‘அறையும் பொறையும் மணந்த தனைய
எண்நாள் திங்கள் அணைய கொடுங்கரைத்
தென்நீர்ச் சிறுகுளம் கீழ்வது மாதோ
தேர்வன் பாரிதன் பறம்பு நாடே’

என்று பாடினார்.

ஏரியை வடிவமைத்தப் பிறகு அதிலிருந்து தண்ணீர் வெளியேற்ற கண்டுபிடித்த தொழில்நுட்பம்தான் ‘மடை’. அந்த மடைகளை அமைக்க முதலில் பனை மரங்கள் பயன்படுத்தப்பட்டன. முதிர்ந்த பனை மரத்தை ‘வாய்ச்சு’ என்கிற கருவியால் வெட்டுவார்கள். மரம் வெட்டுப்படாமல் நெருப்புத் தெறிக்க வேண்டும். அதுதான் மடைக்கு உகந்த மரம். வைரம் பாய்ந்த கட்டை. அப்படியான மரங்களைத் தேர்வு செய்து, அதன் உள்தண்டை நீக்கிவிடுவார்கள். உறுதியான நீண்ட குழாய் தயார். இதனை ஏரிக் கரையின் அடியாழத்தில் பதித்து, அதன் உள் ஓட்டையில் கோரை, நாணல், களிமண் கலந்து அடைத்துவிடுவார்கள். இதுதான் ஆரம்பகால மடை. பின்பு பாறை மற்றும் மரச் சட்டங்களில் மடைகள் உருவாக்கப்பட்டன.

வெள்ளக் காலங்களில் மடைகளைத் திறப்பதற்கு என்றே ஆட்கள் இருந்தார்கள். மடைகளைத் திறப்பது சாதாரண விஷயமல்ல; உயிரைப் பணயம் வைக்கும் சாகசப் பணி இது. வெள்ளக் காலங்களில் ஏரியில் தண்ணீர் நிரம்பி வழியும். கரை வெடிக்கக் காத்திருக்கும். நேரம் கடந்தால் ஊரே அழிந்துவிடும். வெள்ளத்துக்குப் பயந்து மக்கள் ஊருக்கு வெளியே ஒதுங்கிவிடுவார்கள். அப்போது ஒரே ஒருவர் மட்டும் ஏரிக் கரைக்குச் செல்வார். கடல்போல கொந்தளிக்கும் ஏரிக்குள் குதிப்பார். நீரில் மூழ்கி, மூச்சடக்கி, கரையின் அடியாழத்தில் இருக்கும் மடையின் அடைப்பை திறந்துவிடுவார். மடை திறந்ததும் புயல் வேகத்தில் வெளியேறும் வெள்ளம். அதேவேகத்தில் வெள்ளம் அதை திறப்பவரையும் இழுத்துச் செல்ல முற்படும். அதன் வேகத்தில் இருந்து தப்புவது மிகவும் சிரமம்.

மடையைத் திறக்க ஒருவர் உள்ளே மூழ்கும்போதே உயிர் பிழைத்தால் உண்டு என்று கடவுளை வேண்டிக்கொண்டுதான் அனுப்புவார்கள். மூழ்குபவர் மனைவி, குழந்தைகளிடம் எல்லாம் ஆற்றாமையுடன் விடைப் பெற்றுக்கொண்டுதான் ஏரிக்குள் இறங்குவார். இப்படி மடை திறக்கச் சென்று மீண்டு வந்தவர் பலர். மாண்டுபோனவர் பலர். தியாகிகளான இவர்களைப் பற்றி எந்தக் குறிப்புகளோ, கல்வெட்டுகளோ வரலாற்றில் எதுவுமில்லாமல் போனதுதான் சோகம். இவர்கள் ‘மடையர்கள்’என்று அழைக்கப்பட்டார்கள்.

மனதை தொட்டுச் சொல்லுங்கள், இனியும் யாரையாவது ‘மடையா’ என்று திட்டுவீர்கள் நீங்கள்?

Source…..டி.எல்.சஞ்சீவிகுமார் in http://www.tamil.thehindu.com

Natarajan

The Go-Getters of Dharavi , Mumbai….

November 10, 2015November 10, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

Even as plans to redevelop Dharavi continue to gather dust in government files, its young residents have chalked their own course and chosen to fly high. Hepzi Anthony recounts a few inspiring tales.

Other slums may have laid claim to its tag of being Asia’s largest slum, but within Dharavi are stories of India shining despite its squalor, of grit, determination and fighting against odds to overcome barriers.

Transformation is in the air in Dharavi today, and it is not just physical.

Change is manifest not just in the form of the superficial replacement of slums with buildings or in terms of better quality roads, improved hygiene or even the ATMs coming up there; it is evident from the sharp rise in the socio-economic profile of the average Dharavi resident that has seen a massive upsurge.

Indeed, the story of Dharavi today is of not just buildings replacing the slums but the rise of a new generation that is clearly more educated, more informed and more affluent, too.

As a new generation comes up, the success stories from India are now being replaced by stories of its residents working, studying and even settling down in foreign shores.

From being a symbolic representation of the daily struggle for survival of the urban, migrant and Indian poor in Hollywood films, many people raised there now literally crisscross continents for work or study.

Some, like Jasmine Jacob, discovered that her humble origins and surroundings could not clip their wings of ambition.

Her fascination for the scientific world saw her do research in Nanotechnology and take off to countries like the United States and France.

After completing her post-graduation in chemistry from the Institute of Science, Mumbai, she was for a Department of Atomic Energy scholarship that enabled her for a doctoral study of nanosciences at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre.

Her superior performance there further earned her a government-funded post-doctoral research study trip to Paris for 15 months.

From there on she moved on to do another course at the University of Notre Dame at Indiana, US. Incidentally, her entire higher study was done entirely with the help of scholarships.

Having found her dream, Jasmine Jacob now inspires the children of Dharavi to dream big and pursue their ambitions.

“Money is not everything. I am a good example of how if you are prepared to work hard, and you have it in you, nothing can stop you,” says Jacob.

Her father, who worked in a private firm and was the sole bread earner in her family, could not afford to pay her fees for higher studies.

“But my teachers ensured that my studies were not affected. They knew of my background and went out of their way to help me. They supported me by finding out and recommending me for scholarships,” she says.

Currently, she is doing research in nanotechnology and continues to reside in Dharavi, though her family has now shifted to a building there.

“Till my third standard, we stayed in a tin house that would be roughly about 10×10 sq ft and then we moved into a brick house. There were lots of infrastructure issues at home and around. It was impossible to study at evenings as everyone would be watching television and there would be so many distractions around,” she recalls.

Having found her dream, Jacob now wants to inspire other students, especially from her locality, to dream big and pursue their dreams.

Not to convent schools where the rich children go, she prefers to go to her former alma mater Kamaraj Memorial School at 90-ft Road to deliver motivational talks to students. Jacob had studied here in Tamil medium till the fourth standard and thereafter shifted to English medium in the same school.

She tells her students to concentrate on their studies and not get scared of the roadblocks on the pathway to their dreams.

“I was so focused and good at my studies that I did not know many students in my class. But, my co-students knew me and wanted to befriend me for my notes. My locality did not matter to anyone,” she says.

Jacob says she never dreamt of working or staying abroad and did not fancy a high-paying job or the lifestyle there.

“I always wanted to be in India and am happy to be here,” she signs off.

Amolik Selvaraj is quite open to the idea of staying in Dharavi even now. But he is practical enough to know that it would not be that easy for his family.

Her view is shared by Amolik Selvaraj, who also crisscrossed the US and the United Kingdom before returning to Pune for work.

Brought up in Dharavi, 46-year-old Selvaraj started working as a data entry operator while graduating from the Dr Ambedkar College in central Mumbai’s Wadala locality.

Along with studies and work, he took to learning computer software languages like Clipper, Foxpro, VB.NET and C#.NET.

This helped him get offers to work as a systems programmer and got him a breakthrough in Maryland, US, in 2007 for about two years. Thereafter, he shifted to quality assurance that kept his career on a high and helped him move to other countries.

In 2011, he moved on to work in Didcot, Oxfordshire, in the UK for a little over a year.

Recently, he shifted to Pune where he works as a senior consultant at Systems Plus Technologies.

Despite staying abroad for many years and having visited places like Washington, London and Oxford, Selvaraj says that he is quite open to the idea of staying in Dharavi even now.

In fact, he continues to emotionally connect with the place and to date his passport and Aadhar card still bear his Dharavi address.

“One of the things about Dharavi is that one would end up running into so many people just like that. Abroad, people never turn up impromptu at your place. They would almost always turn up only after fixing an appointment. The doorbell never rings without one knowing who would be at the door.

“Also, I have lost my spiritual connect after I shifted out of Dharavi. There, I could just walk over to the open church nearby almost any time of the day,” says Selvaraj.

But he is practical enough to know that it would not be that easy for his family.

“Were it not it for factors like my children’s education and good influence, I would have happily shifted back to Dharavi. Things have changed so much now. ATMs are accessible there and the facilities are much better now,” he says.

Reverend Samuel Christudoss, ex- parish priest of Good Shepherd Church, Dharavi, who has resided in and has been observing the area for over a decade, notices: “It is almost routine to hear old people talking about their children being in the US or Germany these days. Apart from those settled abroad, many people travel abroad regularly for work or for study projects. The new generation has lapped up higher education like never before with the result that almost everyone is literate here now.”

The prosperity has percolated downwards too.

“Long back, when I had to live in Dharavi around 1991, I recall being provided with just mats to sleep with bricks for pillow by the church because the people there themselves lived with such basic, primitive means.

“I would be hauled up even if I took a cab for travelling (autorickshaws are not allowed in Dharavi) and questioned as to why I did not walk the distance. Today, when I am re-posted in this place, I see a marked difference here. The very same church now allows me the option of travelling by air-conditioned cabs, a direct result of the younger generation being exposed to a higher standard of living,” he observes.

So, while the much-touted Dharavi Redevelopment Plan continues to gather dust in the files or drawing boards of the Maharashtra government, the people of Dharavi have chalked their own course and risen to fly up high beyond the boundaries of the nation.

Input….Hepzi Anthony in Mumbai ….www.rediff.com

Natarajan

His Father Died. The Next Morning, He Went On To Save Delhi From The Jaws Of Defeat…..23e

November 5, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

Date: December 18, 2006
Match: Delhi vs Karnataka
Tournament: Ranji Trophy Group ‘A’ Match
Venue: Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi

This is one story that has been etched in Ferozeshah Kotla’s history and will be narrated for years to come. It is the tale of an 18-year-old teenager, who loved cricket. An act, which stunned not just his teammates but also his opposition.

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This is the story of Virat Kohli.

Day 1:

The year was 2006 and Karnataka scored 446 in their first innings at Feroz Shah Kotla.

Day 2:

It was a cold and difficult day for the Delhi Ranji team. They lost 5 wickets chasing Karnataka’s mammoth first innings total. With half of the side back in the hut on the 2nd day itself, it was an uphill task for Kohli and Co. to save the match. The 18-year-old walked out and along with wicketkeeper Puneet Bisht helped reach Delhi 103 at the end of the day’s play, without losing another wicket. Kohli stood solid and unbeaten at 40, but Delhi still needed to go a long way with the last recognized pair in the middle.

That night, his world turned upside down. His father, Prem Kohli, just 54-years-old, passed away.

Day 3:

Kohli faced an awful choice – whether to cremate his father or to go and finish his innings for Delhi. The news of Prem Kohli’s demise had already travelled throughout the Delhi dressing room. Chetanya Nanda was informed that Kohli won’t come to bat and he was asked to pad up. But, his teammates, opposition and even the match officials were shocked to see Virat Kohli arriving in the dressing room in full cricketing gear. He chose to go in and bat.

He played for 281 minutes and faced 238 balls. When he was declared out after scoring a match-saving 90, just before lunch though the bat had brushed the pad as replays showed, his team was clearly out of trouble, with only 36 runs needed to avoid the follow-on.

Second-Test-Virat-Kohli-ton-ensures-draw-for-India-New-Zealand-win-the-series-1-0

At around 12, he watched the replay of his dismissal in the dressing room, quietly removed his pads and went straight to attend the funeral. From 14-4 (top order back to the pavilion), Delhi had managed to save the match and the man who lost his father the night before, was responsible for Delhi’s turnaround.

He knew that his father was gone. But he surely knew Delhi needed him and match could be saved. He just wanted to fulfil his father’s dreams, knowing that some part of his life would never be the same. This shows how big a team man he is.

His father was cremated later that evening and the rest is history. Kohli transformed from an 18-year-old teenager into a mature adult overnight.

Mithun Manhas, the skipper of Delhi Ranji team was all praise for the youngster’s determination:

We asked him what made him come here. And we also told him that if he decided to go back and be with his family, the entire team would support him. He decided to play. That is an act of great commitment to the team and his innings turned out to be crucial.”

Chetan Chauhan, the then Delhi coach, was amazed at his dedication:

“He was barely 18 and he had lost his father at 4 am. I spoke to Virat and his brother and was told that he was in the mental shape to actually go out and bat. Hats off to his attitude and determination. It’s unfortunate that he missed out on a hundred but what matters today is that how he played, not how much he made.”

He never looked back. What followed was sheer beauty.

Virat-Kohli-Cute-Smile

In his Ranji debut season, putting aside his personal tragedy and saving his team from the jaws of defeat certainly proves his mental strength. Only a person with remarkable passion and love for what he or she is doing can go ahead and do something so so…remarkable.

For him, life is cricket. India comes above everything.
Happy Birthday, Virat Kohli. You are a synonym of dedication. 🎂

Source…..Shuvro Ghoshal in http://www.storypick.com

Natarajan

An 83-Year-Old On Oxygen Begins To Sing…By The Time He’s Done, Everyone’s In Tears….

November 5, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

The Young@Heart chorus based in western Massachusetts is comprised of senior citizens ranging from their early 70s and beyond. Established at an elderly housing project in 1982, the program has given countless aging individuals an exciting, fun, and productive pastime to look forward to each day.

During a performance in 2007, 83-year-old Fred Knittle stepped on stage to perform the lead vocal in their cover of Coldplay’s “Fix You.” Though he had retired from their group a few years before and was struggling with health issues, his incredible voice still managed to bring the house down. Prepare for your heart to melt.

https://youtu.be/G-e8LGMPTtE

Sadly, Knittle passed away just two short years after this stirring performance. But thank goodness they captured this amazing moment so his legacy can live on. You can find more of the chorus’s beautiful renditions over on their YouTube page.

Source…..Jessica Catcher in http://www.viralnova.com

Natarajan

” Flying Free Forever…” !!!

October 28, 2015NatarajanLeave a comment

Back in 1981, in an effort to raise some quick funds, American Airlines introduced a $250,000 pass (about $641,000 today) that would allow customers to fly on its airlines for free for the rest of their lives. In 1990, they bumped the price to $600,000 (about $1.07 million today), and then in 1993 to $1.01 million (about 1.7 million today). Despite the sticker price, the airline has since admitted this is one of the costliest mistakes it has ever made.

Introduced in the summer of 1981, the unlimited “AAirpass” was originally envisioned as, to quote the airline’s former chief executive Robert Crandalll, something that “firms would buy for top employees” and it was thought that the scheme would bring in many millions of dollars in revenue in a very short timespan- essentially, easy money now to grow the company with, with future costs of having people use these passes being negligible to absorb. However, the AAirpass’ high cost resulted in a less than enthusiastic response from customers and in the end, only 66 passes were actually sold.

This is a shame for consumers, because those 66 customers got an amazing deal. As Crandall later noted, “It soon became apparent that the public was smarter than we were.”

According to the rather loose terms of the original AAirpass contract, customers who purchased one were entitled to free first class travel anywhere in the world and were given lifetime membership to American Airline’s Admirals Club, which grants priority boarding, same day booking and access to lounges across the world that offer free food and drink for members.

These benefits alone have seen some likening the unlimited AAirpass to “owning a fleet of private planes”. As one of the top frequent fliers, Steve Rothstein said, “A very fun Saturday would be to wake up early and fly to Detroit, rent a car and go to Ontario, have lunch and spend $50 or $100 buying Canadian things…” and then be back by dinner.

In another case, an individual travelled all the way to London 16 times in a single month, sometimes just staying long enough for a bite to eat before flying back home.

But it didn’t stop there. Savvy customers found ways to get even more out of their passes. You see, under the terms of the agreement, customers were still allowed to claim air miles on all flights they took, allowing those who used the service frequently (because why wouldn’t you?) to rack up literally millions of air miles in the space of just a handful of years, which they could give away to family and friends or in the cases of some customers, sell.

On top of this, because the AAirpass offered unlimited free travel, the airline were forced to absorb any and all fees customers incurred while using them (including taxes), meaning customers could literally book a dozen flights at a dozen different times for a single day and roll up to their airport whenever they felt like it, knowing that there would be no cancellation fees to pay for missing the other flights or additional duties or taxes to pay.

But we’re not done yet. On top of all this, American Airlines offered customers a chance to purchase a “companion pass” at a discount price (about 40% off), which granted all the same perks to anyone the original holder wanted as long as they flew together. Customers who opted for this particular upgrade utilised it in a number of impressively creative ways from booking an empty seat under a false name to score more elbow room in the already spacious first class, to ferrying friends and often random strangers across the world for free. In the case of a guy called, Steven Rothstein, he’d sometimes book two tickets for every flight he took just to surprise people at the airport with a free first class upgrade.

If you’re wondering how customers came up with all these ideas for bending the rules, many of them didn’t. A lot of the aforementioned tricks like booking multiple flights on a given day or an empty seat were often suggested to customers by people working for the airline itself as part of the complimentary booking service provided to Admirals Club members.

According to an internal report from American Airlines in 2007, the top unlimited AAirpass holders cost the airline in excess of a million dollars that year, each.Although, it would be interesting to actually see how they tallied this up, because if first class wasn’t sold out on a particular flight an AAirpass owner took, the airline wouldn’t actually lose money other than taxes, the price of in-flight consumables and the like, as it’s likely many of these customers wouldn’t have taken the flights in question had they not had the unlimited pass.

Regardless, the results of this internal report were alarming enough that it prompted American Airlines to sic its so-called revenue integrity unit onto owners of the passes in attempts to find something they’d done that constituted a breach of the AAirpass’ terms.

After pouring over the contracts and doing extensive investigations, American Airlines were able to successfully revoke the passes of a handful of the customers who’d “abused” the system the most. For instance, American tried to coerce certain people who’d been given a free ride courtesy of some of the more generous AAirpass owners into admitting that they’d paid for their tickets. In one such case, it was noted in an internal email from American Airlines that the individual in question who’d been given a ticket by AAirpass owner Jacques Vroom, “appears to be naive, without financial wherewithal, and most probably very anxious to return ‘home’”. So upon the young man checking in, he was taken to a private office and a former police officer working security for American Airlines questioned him, then offered him a free ticket home if he’d just admit he gave Vroom money for a ticket.

In another case concerning Vroom, the individual, one Sam Mulroy, was told his flight was canceled, but that he’d be given a new ticket, free of charge, if he’d just say he payed Vroom for the original ticket. Mulroy denied paying anything. When the offer of a free ticket didn’t work, American Airlines froze Mulroy’s Frequent Flier account. When Mulroy complained to American Airlines and the U.S. Department of Transportation that he felt he was being extorted by the airline, his account was unfrozen.

In the end, Vroom did indeed lose his pass when it was discovered in a subsequent lawsuit that he really had accepted payment for at least a few flights. Vroom, however, claimed the payments were for “business advice” (Vroom is a very successful marketing consultant), not for the tickets. However, Vroom’s lawyers noted that it shouldn’t matter whether he accepted payments or not, as American Airlines didn’t explicitly ban the practice of selling tickets in their “unlimited” pass contracts until three years after Vroom purchased his.

Other customers who lost their passes included a retired bond broker called Willard May who’d been very openly using his pass to ferry people across America for a fee for about two decades and the aforementioned Steven Rothstein for things like booking empty seats for his suitcase under the name “Bag Rothstein”. While May decided against pursuing the matter in court, Rothstein did. He ultimately lost when a judge ruled he had indeed violated the terms of his contract. (Amusingly given how it all turned out, Rothstein once met the aforementioned American Airlines chief executive Robert Crandall during a flight, prompting the then CEO to send Rothstein a letter saying, “I am delighted that you’ve enjoyed your AAirpass investment. You can count on us to keep the company solid, and to honor the deal, far into the future.”)

At least two others were also found to have been in breach of their contracts, according to American Airlines, but their tickets were not revoked for undisclosed reasons.

For the curious, you can still purchase an AAirpass today, though not too shockingly, American Airlines no longer offers an unlimited version. The last time they did so was in 2004, three years before they’d realised exactly how much these passes were costing them every year. At that time, they offered the pass through Neiman-Marcus for $3 million (about $3.7 million today) per pass. Despite that this would have still been a pretty good deal for a certain type of wealthy flyer or certain businesses to have such tickets at their disposal any time, nobody bought any at that price point.

Source…..www.todayifoundout.com

Natarajan